Riveria froze after hearing Su Mo's assessment. In her eyes, Ais had already done incredibly well. She hadn't realized there were still so many areas for improvement. But thinking back, she had to admit that the sound from Ais's wings had indeed been quite loud, and the smoothness of her flight lacked the effortless flow Su Mo had demonstrated.
The more she reflected, the deeper her admiration for Su Mo became. This level of meticulous attention to detail was exactly what one would expect from a Level 7 adventurer. "Thank you for teaching Ais," she said sincerely. In all of Orario, there was hardly anyone capable of instructing Ais in her wind-based auxiliary magic. Even Riveria herself, a skilled mage, had limited knowledge when it came to manipulating wind magic that clung to one's own body instead of being projected outward. In this field, Su Mo was the first—and perhaps the only one—qualified to teach Ais. Just mastering Wind Wings alone was enough for Ais to call him "sensei." None of them had any objections to that title now.
But Su Mo shook his head again. "It hardly counts as teaching. It was just for convenience." And that was true—more skills for the tool meant greater efficiency. Of course, this wasn't some selfless act of mentorship, but more of a way to optimize their journey. Yet clearly, Riveria and the others didn't pick up on this subtext. They simply assumed Su Mo was being modest. Such a humble and low-key powerhouse was extremely rare in the often-boastful city of Orario, making them even more respectful toward him.
Still, Su Mo had no intention of chatting further. After brief introductions and some polite conversation, he took his leave. Ais, of course, stayed behind to return to the Loki Familia with the others.
As Su Mo's figure disappeared into the distance, Ais couldn't help but feel a faint emptiness. She turned around, only to find Lefiya staring at her with a look like an abandoned puppy.
"Lefiya, were you bullied?" Ais tilted her head slightly; her voice filled with concern.
"N-no, not at all!" Lefiya denied quickly, her eyes slightly teary—but her heart fluttered with a bit of joy. As expected, Miss Ais still cares about me! If Ais didn't love her, why would she worry about her feelings? Lefiya felt a renewed sense of hope. Even if Ais and Su Mo grew closer in the future, she could always find a way to stay by Ais's side… even if it meant being the lookout while they had their private moments. That way, I'd still be close to Miss Ais, right? Perhaps this was the true spirit of a hopeless fangirl.
"You're acting strange, Lefiya," Ais said with some confusion. But seeing that Lefiya didn't seem hurt, she didn't press the matter.
At that moment, Tiona came bouncing over, unable to suppress her curiosity any longer. "So, Ais, how many floors did you two actually go down to?" Clearly, she was dying to know.
The nearby adventurers all pricked up their ears. Even Finn subtly leaned forward, trying to listen. Riveria glanced at him and couldn't help but chuckle. "Weren't you just saying it doesn't matter?" she teased.
Finn gave a wry smile and whispered, "How could it not matter? The first to arrive and the second—there's always a difference." His earlier speech had been for morale, but in truth, he cared about this quite a bit.
Under everyone's not-so-subtle gazes, Ais paused for a moment, as if considering whether to answer. Then she spoke. "The exact floor we reached was—"
Everyone held their breath. Even those who had been drinking froze, their drinks stuck halfway in their throats, all waiting for the answer.
Ais smiled faintly. "—That's a secret!"
"Pfft—!"
"Cough! Cough!"
"What do you mean, secret?!"
"Ais-chan, you've become mischievous!"
The group broke out into a chorus of coughing and choking as Ais's unexpected answer left them all flustered. Even her ever-loyal fan Lefiya couldn't help but cast a look of complaint toward her. Seeing everyone's reactions, even Finn and Riveria momentarily lost their composure. A faint, nearly imperceptible mischievous smile tugged at the corner of Ais's lips, though she quickly hid it and shook her head. "Su Mo-sensei and I agreed to keep it a secret."
In truth, there was nothing confidential about it. But Ais wasn't sure whether she should speak of the events earlier, so after some thought, she simply chose to say nothing.
"Ehh, that's not fair!" Tiona whined, trying to coax something—anything—out of Ais. Unfortunately, her pestering had no effect whatsoever. In the end, Ais revealed nothing.
The surrounding adventurers, while initially a bit speechless, ultimately sighed in relief. As long as no one knew how far Ais and Su Mo had actually ventured, there was still hope for the rest of them to surpass that record. Their own expeditions still held meaning. This realization rekindled much of their fighting spirit.
Noticing this, Finn and Riveria exchanged a glance and smiled, shaking their heads. They hadn't expected Ais's playful little stunt to produce such an unintended but positive result.
With curiosity and excitement still lingering from their encounter with the mysterious powerhouse Su Mo, the Loki Familia soon returned to the surface and back to their home base. By the time they arrived, it was already nearing evening. Inside the main hall, their goddess Loki was waiting for their safe return. Seeing everyone back unharmed, their fellow Familia members erupted in cheers, and Loki's mood instantly brightened.
She even stood up and walked to the entrance to personally greet her returning children. For a brief moment, she actually resembled a respectable leader. But that image shattered the instant her gaze landed on Ais. "Guhehe~! Ais-chan, welcome back from your expedition! Come, let me give you a thorough inspection to make sure you didn't get hurt anywhere!" The red-haired, flat-chested goddess lunged at Ais with her fingers twitching like a perverted old man.
With a clean, fluid motion, Ais promptly delivered a powerful kick, sending Loki flying with a loud bang as she crashed into the door. What might have been considered an act of insubordination in other Familias was treated as routine in Loki Familia. Even Finn merely shook his head and sighed. Loki's fine in every other way—it's just this side of her that's troublesome.
Riveria winced slightly but still stepped forward and helped Loki up. "Oww oww oww…" Loki groaned, rubbing her ribs as she stood with Riveria's support. Yet she wasn't angry. Instead, her gaze turned curious as she looked at Ais. "It feels like Ais-chan's movements have gotten even sharper!"
Riveria sighed softly as she reported, "It's probably thanks to Su Mo's instruction."
Although Finn had ordered that details about Su Mo remain confidential, the Familia's goddess was someone they trusted absolutely—even with Loki's odd personality, she was still their leader. Naturally, they didn't hide anything from her.
"Hooh?" Loki's expression turned serious, her eyes narrowing as she processed this new information. Seeing her like this, both Finn and Riveria nodded approvingly. Despite Loki's usual antics, when it came to serious matters, she could be surprisingly reliable. As they watched with respectful anticipation, hoping their goddess would draw some valuable conclusions, Loki finally spoke after half a minute of contemplation.
"So… that bastard wants to steal the purity I've protected for sixteen years?!" she shouted while slamming her hands on the table. Finn and Riveria stared at her, completely speechless. They didn't even have the energy to complain. Even when serious, she's still a pervert, they thought in unison. Please, world… just end already.
Seeing the exhausted faces of her two most dependable subordinates, as well as Ais drawing her sword halfway from its sheath, Loki quickly raised her hands in surrender. "I was just joking!"
Finally, her expression turned serious again. "Finn, you handled things well with Su Mo. For now, we'll keep this quiet. A powerhouse of that level is not someone we can afford to antagonize. You may gather some information on him, but don't dig too deep—surface-level information will suffice. As it stands, he seems to harbor no hostility toward us and even shows some goodwill because of Ais-chan. So, for now, let's simply continue observing. The only thing we need to stay cautious about is making sure this guy doesn't get any funny ideas about Ais-chan!"
At her final remark, Loki's true nature peeked through once more. Yet hearing her words, Finn and Riveria could only shake their heads inwardly. It's not Su Mo trying to make a move on Ais. It's Ais who keeps running to him, they thought. But knowing that Loki wouldn't accept this perspective, they wisely chose not to argue and simply agreed.
With that, things settled down temporarily for the Loki Familia. But half an hour later, as Loki was updating her Familia members' stats, a sudden exclamation from her echoed throughout the entire mansion.
"Breaking news! Ais-chan has reached Level 6!!!"
The news instantly spread throughout the entire Familia, and before long, it swept across all of Orario, leaving every adventurer stunned. The Sword Princess—the strongest female swordsman—had successfully broken through Level 5 today and officially stepped into the ranks of Level 6 adventurers!
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Enjoy!!!!!!